First report: Police search for Golden Gate Bridge climber

SAN FRANCISCO -- The whereabouts of man who climbed a Golden Gate Bridge tower Thursday night, threatened suicide and told officers he had a gun were not known Friday morning, police said.

Thick overnight fog made it impossible to keep track of the man, who last spoke with police between 1 and 2 a.m., San Francisco police Officer Gordon Shyy said.

The man had told police by phone that he was armed, Shyy said. When he climbed down close enough for officers to approach him, their own guns drawn, the man climbed back up and has not been seen since. The officers did not see the man brandish a gun, Shyy said.

As of about 6:30 a.m., the man had not been seen again, Shyy said, leaving three possibilities: the man was still on the tower somewhere and out of sight; he had somehow found a way to sneak off the tower without being seen; or that he'd jumped without officers seeing it.

The standoff began early Thursday evening after police received reports around 6:15 p.m. that a man had climbed a portion of one of the towers. In addition to police negotiators, the California Highway Patrol, Golden Gate Bridge authority and the U.S. Coast Guard responded.

Shyy said he did not know how high the man had climbed. He said that while no lanes of the bridge were closed, enough of a significant police presence existed to cause drivers to slow.

The case is under CHP jurisdiction. As of 7 a.m., they were still at the scene, with officers at all the points where they believe the man could have climbed down.

Their plan was to use a helicopter to get a closer look, but they won't be able to do that until the morning fog lifts, CHP Officer James Evans said.